


observation

by skinandbones



Series: feathers and glass [2]
Category: B: The Beginning (Anime)
Genre: Blame! AU, Conversations, Fluff, M/M, Post-Apocalypse, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2018-08-25
Packaged: 2019-07-02 12:47:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15796839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skinandbones/pseuds/skinandbones
Summary: “Is my hair really that interesting to you?”





	observation

**Author's Note:**

> I say I wouldn't continue this AU (I am a liar) but I guess when random ideas sprout, you just have to write it down. So this series will be filled with various oneshots instead of doing a multi-chapter because I don't have the energy to plan it out.

“Is my hair really that interesting to you?”

“My hair is made up of individual synthetic fibers. Yours are… very human, I’m a bit surprised.” The grin on Koku’s face sends a sharp pang into Keith’s chest. His fingers carefully thread through Keith’s hair, the soft pads of each tip taking refuge, and Keith tries not to be distracted, shifting his goggles and poking at Koku’s left arm, his ear turning a flush of pink but he hopes Koku doesn’t notice it.

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Your hair is soft.” Koku comes off as casual. “It’s actually nice, you maintain it very well.”

“Not to break your heart or anything but I barely make an effort. It’s natural like this, I guess.”

“Natural, huh?” Koku slips some hair behind Keith’s right ear. “I like it.”

Keith snorts.

He retreats back to his work, surveying the damaged cords in Koku’s forearm repairing themselves, a process Koku explained to him about his systems automatically healing when hurt, even better when he ate the yellow bars to hasten the progress.

Keith had no idea no idea what he meant by it until Koku took one out from his hidden stash and handed “food” to him.

It fit in his hand, rectangular in shape, hard and impossible for human teeth to gnaw on. Koku told him to add water to it, so he did and watched it changed into a soft, spongy material. He never seen anything like it before. It had no smell either but he gave it a try despite his hesitance. The taste explodes like a miracle on his tongue, enriched with nutrition he couldn’t even describe, no words to explain how delicious it was and ten times better than the bile he had to drink.

“So do you make this a habit every time you meet a human?” Keith leans back after determining nothing is wrong. He removes his eye wear over his face and places it on the table next to him.

“Only you,” Koku adds. His black armor wraps around the closed wound until his arm returns to normal, matching his attire. “You’re the first I’ve talked to.”

“That can’t be.” Keith finds it unbelievable. “What about the others out there? You must’ve had contact.”

“It’s the truth actually.” Koku changes direction, running down to Keith’s neck and rests there, his thumb rubbing over a pulse. “Your temperature is high.”

“And you’re kind of cold,” Keith shivers from the touch, but he notices the change in topic.

“Sorry. I can raise my temperature if you want.” Koku pulls back but Keith grabs ahold of the fleeting hand, bringing it down in front of him.

“Don’t. It was only an observation.”

The once human hand transforms back into a glove. The enhanced body isn’t only covered in protective plating but wrapped in belts, layers of straps and buckles reaching over his shoulder and connecting to different compartments. For such a small body, Keith wonders how this young man can go through the battles as if pain means nothing to him. He worries when he was told he shouldn’t have to but he can’t let it go that easily.

“I can’t imagine what’s going on in your head. When you look at me, you seemed to have discovered something new.”

“Is that wrong? You have no business with an old man like me, but you don’t hear me complaining.” Keith’s face blankets with a shade of pink, he sees them as purely opposites, human and a machine in one room. He finds it an odd combination, an unexpected joke he would never imagine during his retirement, but this is his reality he’s living with.

“Old? You’re not at all.” Koku smiles, he pulls the metal padding back, revealing his human hand again.

Their fingers curled in each other, and Keith finds himself grasping for the sudden warmth, a subtle action they have no explanation for. Rather, he’s bombarded with an emotion he cannot explain, it moves his heart which he haven’t felt in a long time. Not after _her_.

“Your human years are very young compared to me,” Koku says.

“Please don’t remind me. You don’t even look past twenty.”

“Then, I’ll take it as a compliment.”

They spend their time sitting in the small room, learning about each other - questions that don’t pertain to the outside world. A quiet passing, the stillness of their breaths shared in the space between them and their bodies gravitate towards each other. Without the noises of the tower, without the enemies swarming the levels hunting them down, this home of theirs remains unknown, unable to be detected by prying eyes.

They take a chance, and Keith wouldn’t have it any other way.


End file.
